Thai woman gets one year in Myanmar as US diplomat murder case looms

Bangkok,UPDATED: Aug 27, 2026 00:22 IST

A Thai woman accused of killing her ex-husband, a US diplomat, has been sentenced to one year in prison in Myanmar for violating the country’s immigration laws, though she could still face a murder trial, a lawyer familiar with the case said on Wednesday.

The court in Yangon’s Kamayut township found Pavinee Supasirivisan guilty on Tuesday under a provision that applies to any foreign national who commits a crime in Myanmar. The offence carries a jail term of between six months and five years. It remains unclear whether she has been formally charged with murder, or whether that investigation is still continuing.

The lawyer, who spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid possible repercussions from Myanmar’s military-backed government, said Pavinee is being held at Insein Prison. An official from Kamayut township’s immigration and population department also confirmed the sentence, but did not give further details. He too spoke anonymously, saying he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Neither US nor Myanmar officials have publicly named the dead man. However, the New York Post and other Western media outlets have identified him as 43-year-old Daniel Paul Riva, who served as a US State Department assistant regional security officer. An online obituary for a person with that name lists the same date of death as the victim and recalls his work at several US diplomatic missions. The US State Department has confirmed the death of a US government employee, but declined to give further information, including the person’s name, citing privacy reasons.

Pavinee was arrested after the diplomat was found dead with stab wounds to the head and neck on May 11 at the Sakura Residence & Hotel, a place popular with diplomats, business travellers and other international visitors, about one-and-a-half kilometres from the US Embassy. Police opened a case at the township police station under the relevant murder provision, which carries a punishment ranging from 10 years in prison to the death penalty, the lawyer said.

Myanmar’s authorities rarely speak to the media, which is tightly controlled. The military seized power from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021, leading to widespread protests that later grew into a civil war. Police investigating the case, the Thai Embassy in Yangon and the court that sentenced Pavinee all declined to comment.

In short, Pavinee has been given a one-year prison sentence for an immigration offence in Myanmar, while questions remain over whether she will also stand trial in the killing of her ex-husband, the US diplomat found dead in Yangon in May.

With PTI Inputs

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